Just Told I Have a Positive Quad Screen After Having the Blood Test

I just have to get this off of my chest. My son is 12, he is the joy of my life (well so are my twins but he holds a special place in my heart), he is happy, loves playing, going outside, camping, watching movies, listening to music, watching sports, playing baseball and you know what? He has down syndrome. Down syndrome is not a death sentance, is he work? Yes but what kid isn't.

Again, sorry I had to get that off of my chest and it isn't towards you.

For others wondering what the "quad screen" is, here is a link...

http://www.americanpregnancy.org/prenataltesting/quadscre...

One thing I'm not sure about, but many times the "results" are based on the estimate of thegestational age... so if the true gestational age is off one way or another, that can skew the results.

The best thing to do is schedule another visit with the doctor and have them explain what it REALLY means..... there are a lot of false positives from these tests that unnecessarily scare the parents.

A good friend of mine got positive results as well, and told her child might have Down's Syndrome. She had the amnio and it was fine, as was her son when he was born. The doctors never were able to tell her why she tested positive.

I'll be praying that all is well with your baby.

I know quite a few people who've had positive quad screen results and told their baby would probably have DS and they were born totally normal. A few even went ahead and did the amnio which STILL said yes and the baby STILL didn't have DS! These tests aren't as accurate as you probably think! I'd do some research on it before deciding what to do next. We found out with this pregnancy that my husband and I are both carriers for Cystic Fibrosis and decided NOT to do the amnio because there are false positives and negatives PLUS 1 in 100 babies die from the amnio and that scared us! Good Luck and try not to worry! I know you will anyway.... but try to not stress too much! :o)

There really isn't such a thing as a "postive" quad screen. They are counting up a variety of risk factors (including your age) and calculating a percentage chance you will have a baby with Downs syndrome. If you are over 40, you are fairly likely to have a positive screen, because age is considered a huge risk factor. You should speak in detail to your ob/gyn or a specialist to discuss the exact risk factors, and their opinion. Weigh this against the risk of an amnio (which only tests for certain genetic issues). Then decide if the benefit outweighs the risks.

When we weighed the risk of an amnio (and there is a definite risk) vs the actual chance our child had downs we decided that it wasn't worth it. Remember, an clean amnio does NOT mean your kid will be mentally or physically healthy, just that a specific list of genetic diseases have been ruled out, most notably downs syndrome.

An Amnio, is the most accurate and conclusive test.

I had the Amnio with both my pregnancies.
It was fine.

would you abort the baby if they found downs syndrome?/ If you will keep this baby no matter what.. then there is no reason to have an amnio.

the quad screen is just a screening test... there MAY be a problem.. there MAY NOT be a problem.. the amnio is the only way to tell if the baby has downs.. I have had 2 amnios.. the amnios were normal the kids are fine and healthy.

well Im going to say the same thing everyone else said, but its another person responding to help ease your mind. There are many false positives with this test. I was positive with my son and had an amnio and it came back fine and he is fine! An amnio is the only sure way to rule it out, but there are risks. I hope this eases your fears some. We all know how it is to worry during our pregnancies. Love and light to you and send your baby all the love you can. Blessings!

That test gives out tons of false positives. My daughter and tons of my friends tested positive (basically means higher risk) and all our babies were fine. You will get a really high tech ultrasound, but there is a risk to the baby if you get an amnio.

I am not sure what the quad screen is. When considering the amnio.....I would say make the decision based on what you feel is right. If it won't make any difference as to what you will do, then don't bother. I know with my husband and I, we decided not to do any genetic testing stuff because no matter what we found out, we would not behave any differently. A child having DS is not an easy thing to deal with, but they cope with life and usually are very happy individuals.